So you've managed—by some divine grace—not to finish your
entire pizza. That alone is accomplishment enough, and you
should be proud of your noble restraint. You know what they say:
Good things come to those that wait. See, there have
been studies that prove
it. The good thing coming to you? The ultimate
leftover pizza lunch.

Food52/James Ransom

What has not been studied enough, however, is the best way to
reheat these glorious leftovers. The microwave, technical marvel that it is, will render your
slice a soggy mess, with a crust that's way too hot and mushy.
(Really, if you're going to burn your mouth on anything,
it should be the cheese.) The oven, while it restores that
crispness that made you fall in love at first bite, will also dry
out your cheese and toppings. No amount of crunchy base is going
to make up for that failure.

We polled several experts, and the recommendation was
near-unanimous: Use a skillet.

Anthony Falco, Roberta's head pizza
maestro, recommends putting your slice in a non-stick skillet on
medium-low for a couple minutes. Once the bottom is crisp, add a
couple drops of water to the pan, turn the heat to low, and cover
with a lid. In about a minute, you'll have fluffy crust and
melted cheese. He even shared a super-helpful illustration that he drew
himself—a true Renaissance
man!

Foodt52/Anthony Falco

Our assistant kitchen manager Derek Laughren prefers to use a cast-iron
skillet (as opposed to non-stick) to reheat his pizza. We tested
this with a slice of Roberta's Motorino's
Margherita (pictured here) and it was a melty cheese
success. He then finishes it off in the oven, just for a
minute—not long enough to let it dry out

Our resident pizza expert, Ryan Hamiton, goes rogue: He reheats his
pizza in the toaster oven. Here's how he does it: "I pop two
slices in at 350° F for maybe 5 minutes, and then I usually eat a
third cold slice while I wait on its friends."

After all, leftovers are all about easy eating. Now, they're also
about perfect pizza—no preheat necessary.

How do you reheat your pizza? Or do you just eat your
leftovers cold? Tell us in the comments!

Photos by James Ransom. Illustration by Anthony Falco.

This post was originally published in September 2014, but we
liked it—and reheated pizza—so much, we had to share it
again.